Battlefield 2042

If you’re sick of the aggressively competitive nature of first-person shooters like Call of Duty, Battlefield 2042 could be for you. The game injects heaps of fun into its epic battles, appealing to both series newcomers and veterans alike. Paying full price for a multiplayer title is a difficult pill to swallow, however, especially as it currently feels like a solid foundation rather than a full-fledged experience. With EA DICE taking a live service approach to Battlefield 2042, and the game set to evolve over time, it’s perhaps worth waiting -- unless you’re an avid Battlefield fan.

Battlefield 2042 tries to do a lot, but only some of its experiments are worth celebrating. The 128 player matches of its All-Out Warfare modes definitely feel like too much for their own good a lot of the time, but its more strategic new Hazard Zone mode is incredibly fun. But the fact that the most fun I had with 2042 was playing recreations of its previous games in Portal is a pretty good indication of how ideas like its new Specialist system have missed the mark. For a game claiming to be the future of Battlefield, 2042’s impressive Portal options make it clear that it doesn’t stack up to the past. Instead, it’s those same customization tools that could come to define it in time.

Battlefield 2042 occasionally captures the epic scale and multiplayer madness the series is known for. But the game often stumbles due to poor design decisions and technical issues.